Door fastener



Feb, 1, 1944. s. B. HASELTINE DOOR FASTENER Filed Dec. 5, 1940 2Sheets-Sheet 1 Feb. 1, 1944. 5 s 'n 2,340,470

DOOR FASTENER Filed Dec. 5, 1940 I 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 10 i} fave/#01 3fitatyfllfaseltina Patented Feb. 1, 1944- DOOR FASTENER Stacy B.Haseltine, La Grange, 111., assignor to W. H. Miner, Inc., Chicago,111., a corporation of Delaware Application December 5, 1940, Serial No.368,609

5 Claims. (Cl. 292-241) This invention relates to improvements in doorfasteners for hinged doors of refrigerator automobile trucks, and moreparticularly to fasteners which operate to hold the doors closed whenthe same are slammed shut.

. One object of the invention is to provide a fastener for hinged doors,comprising manually operated means engageable with keeper means forpositively camming the door either open or closed, wherein said means isalso effective to interengage with the keeper when the door is slammedshut to automatically fasten the door in closed position.

Another object of the invention is to provide a fastener for hingeddoors for automobile refrigerator trucks which is effective to securelyfasten the door in closed position when the same is slammed shut andwhich may be'released from locked condition from the interior of thebody of the truck, so that the door may be readily opened by theattendant in the event of his being confined in the truck by accidentalsliding shut of the door.

A further and more specific object of the invention is to provide a doorfastener for hinged doors comprising a lever actuated rotary keeperengaging member arranged to be locked against unauthorized operation anda cooperating keeper,

wherein the keeper includes a moveable part,

normally locked in fixed position, with which thekeeper engaging memberinterlocks to hold the door closed, and wherein means is also providedon the inner side of the door to unlatch said moveable part and actuatethe same to unlock it from the keeper engaging member so that the doormay be. opened from the inside although the rotary keeper engagingmember remains locked against operation.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a fastener forhinged doors comprising a keeper and keeper engaging member, wherein thekeeper engaging member is provided with a cam projection adapted'toengage with and seat ing ll. closed by a door It.

vided with an opening which is closed by a single hinged door, said viewillustrating my improved fastener in connection therewith. Figure 2 is aview similar to Figure 1, on an enlarged scale, of a fragment of thedoor and side wall of the truck body, illustrating my improved fastenermore in detail. Figure 3 is a vertical sectional view correspondingsubstantially to the line 33 of Figure 2,.th Wall of the truck bodybeing shown broken. Figure 4 is an interior "elevational view lookingfrom right to left in Figure 3. Figure 5 is an elevational view'on theline 5--5 of Figure 2, looking in the directionof the arrows. Figure 6is a vertical sectional view, corresponding to the line 6-6 of Figure 2.Figures 7 and 8 are views similar to Figure 6 but showing the fastenermeans in different operative positions.

In said drawings In indicates a wall of a chamber, such as the body of arefrigerator automobile truck. The wall in has the usual door open- Thedoor 12 is of the swinging type and is supported by hinges l3V-l3secured to the wall In at one side of the door opening. As is usual inrefrigerator trucks, the cooperating engaging edges of the door andwalls of the door opening" are provided with insulation which is tightlycompressed whenthe door is forced to completely closed position.

My improved fastener comprises broadly a keeper housing A; a swingingkeeper element 3; a supporting bracket C on the outer side of the door;a rotary keeper engaging member D journaled in the bracket C; anoperating lever E for the keeper engaging member; a lever supportinghousing or bracket F on the inner side wall of the refrigerator body; alever G pivoted in the bracket F; a combined locking and actuating rodor latch H connected to the lever G; and a key controlled lock L mountedin the operating lever E. a V

The housing A includes a base plate It by which the same is secured tothe outer side of the wall 5 H) of the truck body, the baseplatebeingpreferably fastened by screws extending into said wall.

Outstanding from the base plate are. vertically spaced, horizontallydisposed, top and. bottom walls l5 and I6, and laterally spaced,verticalside walls Hand l8, forming the top, bottom and side walls ofthe housing. The top and :bottom'walls l5 and I6 are connected toacurr'entfrontwall l9. The side wall 18 onlypartly'closesthec'orresponding sidevof the housing'at the bottom thereofand is ofthe.height and. shape shown ,most' clearly in Figures 6, 7,.and8, being ofthe latter is in position secured to said wall.

greater height at the front than at the rear ofthe housing and havingits top edge downwardly and rearwardly inclined between the front andrear ends thereof. The opening above said side Wall I8, which isindicated by 26, is relatively large, as shown. The front wall I 9 iscut out to provide a relatively large opening 2|, as indicated inFigures 2 and 3, thus leaving a relatively narrow flangelike wallportion along the side wall 11 and a relatively low fiangelike portion22 along the bottom of the housing connecting the side walls I! andI8,said wall portion 22 being of substantially the same height as theouter extremity of the side wall [8. The wall 22 is spaced from thelower end of the flangelike wall which extends along the wall H toprovide a horizontal opening or slot l2l. The housing is open at theback, as indicated at 23, the wall ll] of the automobile body closingthe back of the housing when As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the housing Ais mounted directly at the edge of the door opening H.

The keeper element B comprises a winglike plate section 24 having itsupper edge rounded, as indicated at 25, and having a lateral flange 26near its bottom end with the main portion thereof extending in a planeat an angle to the longitudinal axis of said plate and substantiallyhorizontal as shown in Figure 3. At the outer end the flange 28 iscurved upwardly, as indicated at 21 ,'the end of the flange at saidcurved portion extending beyond the front edge of said plate section24'. At the left hand end, as viewed in Figure 2, the upwardly curvedportion of the flange Ziiis adapted to register with the slot l2! ofthehousing A. The flange 25, at the junction "of said curved portion andthe horizontal section thereof, is thickened, as shown, and is providedon its upper face with outer and inner concave seats or depressions 28and 29 at the front and rear endsof said thickened portion, saiddepressions extending entirely across the flange. The thickened portionpresents a cam face 3?) which merges with the seat 29. The keeperelement B is swinging-1y supported on a cylindrical lug or pivot member3| projecting from the inner side or the wall I! of the housing and intoa suitable bearing opening in the plate section 24. The plate section 24extends below the fiange'Zfi and has its lower edge rounded, as shown,said rounded edge merging with the outer face ofthe upwardly curvedportion 2 1 of the flange- 2-5. At the rear portion of the bottom end ofthe late section 24, .adepending, laterally extending rib 32 4s providedon the flange 26, the ribbeing cut away at its outer end to clear theactuating rod The rib 32 forms a projection or shoulder for a purposehereinafter pointed out. i

The keeper engaging member D is rotatably supported in the bracket C,which is mountedon the outer side of the door l2 adjacent the free edgethereof, insuch a manner that it will be in transverse alignment withthe keeper housing A door by any suitable means, such as-screws, ex-

tending throughopem'ngs in the base plateand into the body of .the door.The bearing portion 34. comprises two laterally spaced sections '35 and.36 having aligned, horizontally disposed, cylindrical bearing openings31-32. The bearing opening of the section 35 is closed at its outer end.by a Wall ,38. The section 350i the bearing 39, the lower end portion ofwhich is formed on the plate 33. The inner face of this flange is invertical alignment with the inner end face of the section 35 andcontinuous therewith. The depending lower end portion of the flange 39is provided with an opening therethrough forming a seat 48 for thelocking pin 4| of the key controlled lock L, hereinafter described.

The keeper engaging member D includes a relatively short, cylindricalshaft 42 journaled in the bearing openings 3i-3'l of the bearing portion34 of the bracket C. At the outer end of the shaft 42 a head 43 isprovided. The head 43 comprises a keeper engaging portion proper 44 anda guide portion .45. The keeper engaging portion 44 of the head isoutermost and is of the shape shown most clearly in Figure 3. The head43 is provided with a transverse shoulder I43 at the upper side thereofadapted to engage with the end edge of the top wall 15 of the housing toforce the door 52 open, as hereinafter described. The keeper engagingportion 44, as shown in vertical section in Figure 3, is of irregularoutline having a projecting cam portion at at the bottom thereof. Thecam portion 46 has a curved face 41 which forms the active cam elementof said cam portion. The rear side of the portion 44 of the head 43 iscut away to clear the keeper element B as the door swings to open orclosed position. As shown in Figure 3, the portion 44 is cut away insuch a manner as to present a substantially straight back face 3, saidback face 28 forming a relatively sharp corner with the end of the camface 4.1 to present, in effect, a tooth portion at said cam projection45. outwardly beyond the cam face 41 the lower side face of the keeperengaging portion 44' presents a stop shoulder 49adapted to seat on the.end of the upwarnly curved 'pQrtion21 of the flange 26 of the keeperelement B to limit-rotation ofthe keeper engaging member D. The guideportion 415. which forms'the part of. the head .43. inwardly of thekeeper engaging portion 44. extends rearwardly beyond the face 48 anddownwardly beyond the cam projection 46 of said portion 44, butotherwise corresponds in. outline to the same. These projecting portionsof the guide portion 45 form, in effect, a relatively thick flange orwing been, the head 3 having substantially straight edge faces ,5! andEZHmeeting, at .an obtuse angle.

The lever E is fix'edto the shaft .42.;of the keeper engaging. memberIDin any suitable well-known manner ,and'comprises; ahead ;53'and. arelatively narrower hand grip portion 54 extending. from said head. Thehead portion 53 is accommodated for; swinging movement'in theopeningbetween the sections 3.5".andi3i'efthe bearing..porti 3d of thebracket and hasva hollow boss .55 below the pivotalaxis of theleverforming a socketwithin whichthekey controlled lock is mounted.

The key controlled lock L is of-wel l knowndesign, being in. the form ofa bolt having the-projecting'locking portion 4| adapted to engage in theseat. 4!! on. the bracket .0 to :lock. the lever .against movement. As.is :well 'knownlin key operated: locking. means ;of thistype, theilockis. spring gportionll.hasanoutstanding, depending flangelpressediandnwhen unlocked-'1 projects utw m beyond the boss 55. Tooperate the same to lock the-lever E, it is pressed inwardly to engagethe its outerposition, thus unlocking the lever E. The supportingbracket F comprises a platelike base portion 56, laterally; spacedvertical flanges 51-51 projecting from the central portion of saidplate-dike base, andahorizontal top wall or flange 58 closing. the spacebetweenthe upper ends of the flanges 51-51. The bracket F is securedtothe inner side of the wall IU of the truck body adjacent the dooropening ll opposite to the housingA on the outer sideof the wall l0. Anysuitable means, such as screws, extending through the base plate 56 ofthe bracket F and into the wall lil, serve to secure the bracket inposition.

The operating lever G is swingingly mounted at its upper end on a pivotbolt 59 fixed in the flanges 51-51 of the bracket F and extendingthrough a pivot opening in said lever. Immediately below the pivot, onthe side of the leverG which is adjacent the wall I0, the same isprovided with inwardly projectinglaterally spaced ears 60-66 providedwith transversely aligned pin receiving openings. I

The combined locking and actuating rod H is in the form of acylindricalbar having an eye 6| at its inner end and bent angularly atits outer end to provide a hook 62. This rod H is pivotally connected tothe lever G by a pin 63 extending through the ears 6ll69 and the eye 6|of the rod, the eye portion 6i being accommodated between,

said ears. The rod H extends through the wall Ill and into the keeperhousing A, the outerend of the rod underlying the swingable keeperelement B. The wall Ill of the truck body and the plate portion of thebracket F are provided with aligned,

openings 64 which accommodate the rod H, these openings being verticallyelongated to permit the required upward and downward displacement of therod during swinging movement of the lever G. The angularly bent hookedend of the rod projects to the left of the main body portion or shank ofsaid rod, as seen in Figure 2, to overhang the rib 32 of the keeperelement B so that when the rod is pulled inwardly the hooked end thereofwill engage the rib 32 and thus swing or rock the keeper element on itspivot to clear the keeper engaging portion of the member D and thusunlock the door. As will be evident when in the position shown in Figure3, the rod H blocks swinging movement of the keeper element B.

The locked position of the door I2 is clearly illustrated in Figures 1to 6 inclusive and, as shown most clearly in Figures 3, 5, and 6, thedoor is held in that position by the cam projection of the keeperengaging member being seated in the depression 29 of the keeper elementB. With the operating lever E locked by the key controlled lock L, it isthus impossible to unlock the door from the outside without firstunlocking the lever. However, the attendant can operate the door fromthe inside even when locked by the key controlled lock L by utilizingthe safety feature provided by the lever G. This isof great importanceif someone becomes imprisoned in the refrigerator truck. In the event itbecomes necessary to open theidoor from the inside of the truck body,due to the attendant being trapped by the door accidentally swingingshut or by same being fastened from the outside by the keeper engaginglever being locked by the key controlled lock L, thedoor may be readilyopened by actuating the lever G,

Asthe lever G is swung upwardly and awayfrom the wall of the truck body,the rod H is pulled inwardly to unlock, and provide clearance forswinging movement of thekeeper, element B, and

then engage the hook of said rodwith the rib 32 of the keeper element toswing the latter on its pivot to completely clear the cam projection ofthe keeper engaging member D, thereby unlocking the keeper engagingmember; from the keeper and permitting'the door to be pushed open fromthe inside In opening the door from the outside the operation of myimproved door fastener is as follows:

The key controlled lock L is first unlocked inthe usual manner, thuswithdrawing the pin 41 from looking engagement with the bracket C,thereby freeing the lever E for swinging movement. The lever E is thenswung outwardly away fronithe wall 10 by the attendant, thereby rotatingthe keeper engaging member D and clearing the same from the keeperelement B, the cam projection of the member D being moved out ofengagement with the seat 29 and the cam face '39 thereof. The door maythen be pulled open manually by swinging the same outwardly. In theeventthat the door is jammed in the door opening due 'to sticking of thesame, it may be pried open by swinging the lever E upwardly away fromthe door to a greater extent, thus bringing the shoulder I43 of thekeeper engaging member D forcibly against the outer edge of the top wallI5 of the housing A and moving the dooroutwardly by the prying action ofthe 1ever against said wall. The door may then be manually swung open inthe usual manner.

To close the door the same is slammed shut, thereby bringing the keeperengaging member D fforcibly against the keeper. As the door is thusswung to closed position, the face 52 of the guide portion 45 of thehead 43 of the keeper engaging member engages with the upper edge of theflange 22 of the housing A, as shown in Figure 7, thereby camming thelever E upwardly until the face 52 passes beyond said flange 22, therebypermitting the lever to swing downwardly and the keeper engaging memberto rotate to a position to engage the cam projection thereof within theseat 29 of the keeper element, as shown in Figures 3 and 6, and permitthe cam face 41 of the cam portion 46 of the member D to engage in backof the cam face 30 of the keeper element B, thus latching the doorclosed. The key controlled lock L is then depressed to lock the lever Eto the bracket C, thereby efiectively locking the keeper engaging memberD against rotation.

In the event that the door is not slammed shut with a force sufficientto compress the insulation thereof to the required extent to bring thedoor to completely closed position with the cam projection 46 of thekeeper engaging member in locked engagement with the seat 29 of thekeeper element B, or the resistance of the insulation to compression istoo great to permit the door being slammed to completely closedposition, the cam projection 46 will seat in the outer seat 28 of thekeeper element, as disclosed in Figure 8. To then bring the door totightly closed position, the operating lever E is forced toward thedoor, thereby rotating the keeper engaging member D jrom the "Ihaveherein shown and described what I now consider -the' preferredmanner or carrying out my invention, but the same ismerely illustrativeand I contemplate all changes and modifications that come within thescope of the claims appended hereto.

I claim 1. Ina fastener for a hinged door of a container, thecombination with means on the outside of the container for locking thedoor in closed position, including a keeper element adapted tobeenga'gedhy a keeper engaging member, said keeper element being movableto disengage the same from the keeper engaging member; of a reciprocablelatch bar normally locking said element against movement; a projectionon said bar having shouldered engagement With said element to move thelatter to disengage the same from said keeper engaging member; and meansoperable from inside the container for reciprocating said latch 'bar tounlock said element and move the same to disengaged position.

2. In a fastener for a hinge'd door of a container, the combination-witha movable keeper element adapted to be engaged by'a rotary keeperengaging member mounted on the outer side of the door; of aslidenormal'ly blocking movement of said element to hold thelatter inlocked engagement with the keeper engaging member; a projection on saidslide engageable with a shoulder on said element; and lever means on theinside of said container for sliding said slide to iree said element formovement and engage the projection on said slide with the shoulder onsaid element to move thelatter out of shouldered engagement with thekeeper engaging member to unlock said doorto hen-pushed open from theinside of said container.

' 3. Ina fastener for a hinged door of acon tamer, the combination witha keeper element with which a keeper engaging means is adapted tointerlock when the door is closed; means supporting said elemen'tforrocking movement; a slidable' bar normally in the path of rockingmovement of said element blocking movement of the same; a hook on saidbar engageable' with said elem'entwhen said bar is slid lengthwise torock said element to unlock itfrom the keeper engaging member; and levermeans on the interior of the container connected to said bar to slidethe same to free said element for. rocking movement and rock the same tounlock the door.

4. a keeper means for a door fastener including a keeper engaging membermounted on the outer side of a hinged door, the combination with arocking keeper element normally latched against rocking movement, withwhich the keeper engaging member is adapted to interlock to hold thedoor clo'sed; of a slide for latching said elementagainst rockingmovement; means operable from inside the container for moving said slideto unlatch said element; and cooperating shouldered-means on said slideand. element for rocking the latter during movement or" said slide tounlock said element from said keeper engaging member and thereby freethe door to be pushed open from inside said container.

5'. In keeper means for a door fastener for conta'iiiers comprising akeeper engaging member located on the outside of the container, thecombination with a movable keeper element normally locked againstmovement, with which said keeper engaging ;member has shoulderedengagement to lock the door; of sliding locking means for looking saidelement against movementfmeans operable from. the inside of thecontainer for actuating said sliding means to unlock said keeperelement; and cooperating shouldered means on said sliding means andelement for moving said element out of. shouldered engagement with saidkeeper engaging member during actuation of said sliding means to unlockthe door.

srAoY 13-. nA LTi-un.

